In the last year, Yakut cinema, a phenomenon that has been discussed for several years, has strengthened its position, becoming a sensation at Kinotavr. The film Scarecrow by Dmitry Davydov, a former school teacher and now the most famous director of Yakutia, received two awards: the Grand Prize for best film and the prize for best actress. This event is all the more surprising because the story of a persecuted sorceress who takes on someone else’s pain was the first Yakut film admitted for screening in Sochi and given wide Russian release.
Having celebrated a victory that came out of nowhere, the cause of the sensation managed to shoot his next film—editing should be completed in the fall—and, together with his colleagues, is laying the groundwork for the Yakut landing on the Asian film market. Dmitry Davydov told ALROSA magazine about the future prospects of cinema in the Sakha Republic, about budgets, festivals, as well as old and new projects.
How I got into movies
I worked at a school and led a study group for teenagers where we filmed some videos—that was before 2011–2012. Just then, a boom in local cinema began in Yakutia, and there were full houses. I watched these films and realized that, in principle, I could shoot at the same level, and that I also had something to say. So, I wrote a script, and in 2014, I made my first film, Bonfire in the Wind. All this time, I continued to work at the school—until last winter. And then I moved over to cinema once and for all—it would have been impossible to combine the two. We shoot films quite quickly—we have a small shooting team of 18–20 people, and that allows us to be efficient. For example, very recently I shot a new film—the process took 15–16 days, and by fall we should finish editing, then we plan to shoot a new film. That is how we work.
Independent films
Cinema can be mass market or independent. The first type operates according to the typical business scheme: you create a product with the expectation of making money on it. I make independent films—for me, expressing my views is most important of all. Of course, you won’t always make money on such films, but Scarecrow allowed me to cover all production costs, while I made the movie that I wanted to make. Who is the creator? The one who develops an idea, turns it into a script, makes a film based on it, edits it and shows it. So I write all the scripts for my films on my own. After the victory at Kinotavr, I began to receive a large number of scripts from different regions, including Moscow. But I do not accept them—I knew from the very beginning that I would do everything myself.
Shooting took 11 days, with a budget of 1.5 million rubles
Dmitry Davydov wrote the script for the film over almost a decade: according to him, the story went through his mind for a long time—it matured, and was promptly completed in 2018, shortly before the start of filming
The main role in the film was played by Valentina Romanova-Chyskyyray, a popular Yakut singer and actress at the Yakutsk State Variety Theater. The role in Scarecrow was her film debut and brought her first award: the Best Actress prize at Kinotavr-2020
My actors
I live in the Amga region, in Amga village. I shoot in the same place, and I only involve local people in my films: friends, acquaintances, and other residents of the village. We pay for the work depending on the jobs in the project—we discuss it with everyone separately. For the next project, I will probably invite artists from our Sakha theater (Sakha P.A. Oyunsky Academic Theatre—ALROSA), but some of the actors will still be from here, from Amga.
About budgets
Now, the average price tag of a Yakut film is somewhere around 3–4 million rubles. We shot Scarecrow for 1.5 million rubles, but now it would be unrealistic to keep within the same budget. Some of the equipment, which we do not have in Yakutia, we bring in from Moscow and St. Petersburg, and the rental costs are constantly growing. Later, we began to invite Moscow specialists—operators, artists—and that costs more. If we want to be competitive in the market, we need to increase our budgets. All of our Yakut films are shot here, in our area, with a limited number of actors—we cannot afford mass scenes or, for example, complex sets. With an increase in budget, we could do larger-scale projects, for example, historical ones.
About the Kinotavr victory
Of course, while shooting Scarecrow, I did not think that it would get into any festivals, let alone win a prize. We just tried to shoot what we wanted. And the victory at Kinotavr was a great surprise to me, almost a shock. Even the very fact that we were accepted there—after all, Yakut films have been applying to the festival for five years, but they have always been turned down. Therefore, the release of Scarecrow to a wide Russian audience is a big step forward for us. On the other hand, now we have to think about what will happen next. It seems that we have been given an opportunity—we received good reviews from critics and comments from viewers. But what can be done to keep the interest in Yakut cinema alive, so that it expands beyond the region? Because if nothing changes, it will be a big disadvantage for us.
About interest in Yakut cinema
Everyone used to think that Russian films were only produced in Moscow, that there was just nothing else. And all of a sudden, it turned out that it exists in the regions, in Yakutia, for example. Moreover, it is completely autonomous, independent of Moscow—it has its own distribution, its own audience, and it’s doing quite well. That was a discovery for many people. Russia is vast, its residents speak different languages, and the Russian audience is beginning to understand that. And it was probably tired of the monotony of so-called “capital cinema”. The viewers I spoke to said that they would like to see Russia in different ways—and in essence, it is different. They are really interested in Yakut films—for them that is also Russian cinema.
Features of Yakut cinema
There are always three constant components in Yakut cinema: the Yakut language, local actors and nature. We all mainly live in villages, near forests. Therefore, nature is an important part of almost any Yakut film: it is simply a must. One of the success factors of our cinema is that it is not limited to some purely ethnic themes, but works in different genres: we have films designed for a wide audience and niche ones. We do not shoot local stories, just those that are clear to absolutely everyone. Our stories are completely universal, and could just as well be shot somewhere in central Russia. Thanks to this versatility, Yakut cinema has audiences outside the region. We have shown our films in the West, and they have been well received there, too.
On the rules of Russian cinema
There are long-established rules in Russian cinema, and it is not easy to follow them. And there is no great interest in doing that. I always say to my Yakut colleagues that we have a much better chance if we work with other countries. Moreover, there is already such experience. We took films to various film festivals—to Canada, Australia, Germany—and we were received with even greater interest there than in Russia. Here we are only interesting as some sort of exotica. By the way, now the Yakut film Ich-chi, directed by Kostas Marsaan and produced by Marianna Siegen, should be released in the US. It will be very interesting to see how the audience will take it—it is also a new experience for our cinema. In general, I think we have good prospects in Asia—there is a lot of money in the Asian market, a large audience, and we are close to the culture of the region. This autumn, we and other Yakut directors also wanting to undertake big projects with other countries are planning to show 10–12 of our films in the Asian market, to make ourselves known. Generally, we try to unite and support each other.
And about the new rules of the American Film Academy*
All these rules seem strange to me—they are dictated by Hollywood, but besides Hollywood, there is other cinema in America, which is broader and operates outside these rules. And there is no point in focusing on the Oscars—there are many other festivals in the world: Berlin, Rotterdam, where we will go in June with Scarecrow, and the Asian film screenings. And we have a much better chance of getting there than to the Oscars. We are currently talking to many representatives of various festivals—it’s an opportunity to take Yakut cinema outside the region.
Films I watch
Recently, I have been watching old Soviet films of the 1970s and 1980s—catching up on what I missed as a child. For example, I watched The Master of Taiga, and next I’m planning to watch the seven films by Tarkovsky—it so happens that I haven't seen a single one. As for contemporary Russian cinema, over the past year I have not seen anything interesting. And if there is nothing interesting in what is being done now, you should turn to the classics—to Soviet films.
* Last year, American Academy of Motion Picture Arts and Sciences presented a list of criteria that must be met by films nominated for an Oscar in the Best Picture category. The list includes the following points: the main or leading supporting role must be played by at least one representative of an ethnic minority; at least 30% of the performers of secondary roles must be women, representatives of a particular racial or ethnic group, LGBTQ+ people, or people with disabilities; the theme of the film should be focused on these groups, etc.